Strawberries and Cream Surprise Cupcakes

Introduction

The Surprise is that these cupcakes have no butter or oil in them, less sugar and less flour, but do use zucchini, and have a hidden spoon of strawberry jam!
If made using rice flour they are also wheat free.

Minutes to Prepare: 10

Minutes to Cook: 20

Number of Servings: 12

Ingredients

2 medium eggs
160g caster sugar
200g topped & tailed, peeled then grated courgette (zucchini) (200g weight AFTER the topping tailing and peeling)
1 tsp vanila extract
100g white rice flour (can use ordinary plain flour if you have no rice flour but the recipe would not then be gluten free)
100g ground alomnds
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

12 tsp strawberry jam

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C / 350 F / Gas mark 4 and line a 12 hole muffin or cupcake tray with cupcake liners.

2. Whisk the eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl until they are pale and fluffy (this takes up to 4 minutes of solid whisking).

3. Whisk the grated courgette (zucchini) and the vanilla extract into the egg mixture until well incorporated. Finally, whisk in the flour, ground almonds, baking powder and salt until everything is completely combined.

4. Using a large spoon, ladle a couple of spoons of the mixture into each paper case. Add a teaspoon of jam, then cover that with a small spoonful of mixture, in order to seal in the jam. The ratio should be roughly two thirds cake mixture at the bottom, then the jam, then one third cake mixture to finish. If you only leave a little bit of cake mixture for the top, you end up with the jam bleeding and splitting out of the top of the cupcake.

5. Place in the oven for 20 minutes until risen and blonde on top. Once the cupcakes are cooked, cool them down in the tin for 10 minutes.

IF you wish to ice them, I recommend a marscapone cheese icing, which must be applied when the cupcakes are completely COLD. You will need to count the nutritional values for the icing separately.

Number of Servings: 12